Disney-area NAMM music show brings stars, traffic

Getting ready for NAMM

When the NAMM Show comes to town, local businesses beef up their staffs and make other preparations to get ready for about 96,000 people in the Anaheim Convention Center area. Here's what a few businesses are doing:

Starline Tours: Reserved two vehicles for concierges to call at any time for transportation or private tours during the convention

Courtyard Marriott Hotel: Extended hours at the bar and bistro and added check-in staff for the event

Roy's Restaurant: Increased kitchen and front-of-house staff, such as servers and hosts, by about 25percent during the show

Source: Anaheim/Orange County Visitor and Convention Bureau

By the numbers

1,600: Exhibiting companies

5,000: Brands exhibiting

46:Countries of international companies

91.5 million: Dollars of economic impact

Source: NAMM

Stevie Wonder was declared the mayor in Anaheim last year.

Of course, the performer wasn't elected the mayor of Anaheim – that's Tom Tait, for those who don't keep up with city politics.

But for four days each year, musicians, such as Wonder, take over the city.

About 96,000 registrants are expected at the National Association of Music Merchants Show – one of the biggest annual events, by far, at the Anaheim Convention Center – which runs Thursday through Sunday.

NAMM Show officials, for fun, last year gave a proclamation to Wonder, naming him the mayor of the convention because he regularly appears at the music-products show.

“He really embodies a lot of the spirit of NAMM and the music industry,” said Lora Bodmer, a spokeswoman for NAMM.

Wonder is just one of many celebrities who head to Anaheim each January. This year, some stars scheduled to appear include Todd Rundgren, Chad Smith of the Red Hot Chili Peppers, the Crystal Method and “The Sing-Off” host Ben Folds. Others play in private shows sponsored by companies for clients.

But most Anaheim residents can't see the stars because NAMM is closed to the public. Only those in the music industry with special badges are allowed in the doors.

Most locals likely want to avoid the area, where traffic backs up as convention-goers head into the complex, which swells to roughly the population of Mission Viejo for the long weekend.

Still, the show is important to the city; the biggest chunk of the city's budget comes from hotel bed taxes, and most rooms fill up during the convention. The show estimates that it contributes $91.5 million to the local economy.

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